I have black mold in my bathroom on my painted walls?

Question

it's been there for about 2 yrs, I've tried scrubbing the walls with 409 and a sponge but it hasn't been enough.

i rescently found out from a friend how bad it can be to breathe in. i'm in that bathroom a lot:showering,changing etc.

does bleach work to get it out? any suggestions from someone who knows will help. thank you

Answer 1

bleach and water.

Answer 2

Bleach is very good...buy some Ajax with bleach or Comet with bleach tile cleaner works great for mine.

Answer 3

I live in an apartment and there is black mold in the bathroom I use a spray bottle with half water and half bleach. I spray it every day in the morning it kills what can be seen but it will return. There is paint that will kill it also and keep it from returning. However the only way to have it removed completely is to have a professional come to your house and do the job right. It is harmful to breath the spores, I have seen it removed before they took some of the wood all the sheet rock. The bleach works but you must keep doing it all the time. Good luck to you with this problem.

Answer 4

my mom uses bleach to clean the bathrooms.

and isnt black mold really, really bad to be around?!?!  

Answer 5

bleach is usualy the one thing that can kill any mold .

"Black Mold" is a term commonly used to describe a slimy, greenish-black substance which can result in serious health risk. This infamous mold is also known as Strachybotrys chartarum and more often as Strachybotrys atra. It has been closely linked to the death of babies from respiratory bleeding, and as a contributing factor to illnesses such as asthma and bronchitis. According to the CDC(Center of Disease Control), this mold is responsible for over "100 cases of lung disorders".

Mold spores are very easily transported to different areas by attaching themselves to various hosts. These hosts would include people, animals, shoes and they even enter through open windows and doors. The spores then thrive and grow where it is damp and moist. Very toxic molds can develop from water seepage, and while black mold is "less common than other mold species it is not rare".

Areas and substances where black mold can be found include water soaked wood, ceiling tiles, wall paneling, cardboard, even items made of cotton. Black mold can grow on drywall and insulation and can infest areas in the floors, walls and ceilings.

Moisture is essential to the growth of black mold, and when it is wet it is shiny in appearance. If you were to physically touch a spot of black mold, it would feel slimy and would smear on the area.

When you are contemplating clean up of black mold, you need to verify the extent of the problem. Many of the infested areas will be relatively small and be a result of small leaks or plumbing problems. After discovering the root of the problem and rectifying it, you can disinfect the area with bleach. A mixture of one cup bleach to a gallon of water is sufficient to disinfect the area. Apparently adding a touch of dish soap to the mixture will also aid in dissolving accumulated grease and dirt in the area.

You are to apply the bleach mixture to the moldy area and leave it to saturate the area for approximately fifteen minutes. After this you must take care to thoroughly dry the cleaned area.

Spores from dried mold are very dangerous and should be cleaned with caution. You should never scrape or scratch at dried mold as the spores would then be released into the air and pose an inhalation risk. A respiratory mask and eye protection are necessary and adequate clothing to prevent skin contact is recommended.

If the problem is more internal such as on insulation or throughout a carpet, the only solution is to remove and replace the items. As well an infested area of over 2ft is considered a "heavily infested" area and professional help should be consulted. Mold problems resulting from flooding should also be managed professionally to avoid possible health risk.

According to the CDC, there are some preventative measures you can personally take to battle black mold. The following are some of their suggestions; keep the humidity of the house down, make sure there is adequate ventilation inside the home(especially in the kitchen and bathroom), add mold inhibitors to new paint before painting, use mold killing products to clean and do not use carpet in the bathroom.

Black mold issues are something everyone should be aware of and know how to combat. Search through any news source and you will see that toxic mold is a common cause for school closings. If the school board will go through such measures to eradicate the problem then we should be just as cautious. It is also important to remember that like all other types of fungus, there are some people who may be more sensitive to the effects of black mold. People who have allergies, respiratory disease or any type of immune suppressing disease should be especially wary of this toxic mold.

Answer 6

bleach does work but to really get rid of it go buy some moisture mould cleaner. In the netherlands its in a spray bottle and it contains mostly bleach and something else to kill the mould. If you cant find that, simply apply bleach (remember to ventilate!!!) leave it for a while and then scrub it off woth lots of water. (provided that your walls are white)

Answer 7

Bleach will not get it out. You need to call a contractor who specialized in mold. Get references and make sure they are licensed for hazardous material removal in your state/ county.

Answer 8

yeah, that happens 2 my bathroom too!!!  you just have 2 keep humidity down and keep a fan in there.

Answer 9

Consider yourself lucky not to have any blue molds.

That would be sad.

Answer 10

Same here above the shower. Do you have a fan in the bathroom? If not that would be the culprit or a fan that isn't powerful enough. I use bleach and a towel and it comes off. It does come back about once every one to two months.

Answer 11

Probably poor ventilation is the problem.

The walls in a bathroom see a lot of moisture. If they are not allowed to dry out daily- then mold will be a problem.



If if you remove the old walls and install new ones- you will get mold again eventually.

How long do the walls stay moist after someone showers?? If they do not dry out completely after a couple hours- then I would spend my money or drying the place out.

If there is mold behind the wall-- you need to figure out  "why" before you replace anything.

In many older homes the standard was to place an exhaust ventilator in each bathroom that did not have a window to the outside. The idea was that if you have a window- that you will open it when you are in the shower. Thats a dumb idea- yes. But the result was that many bathrooms were put in homes with no ventilation.

Yes bleach will kill mold. If the mold returns later-- its more likely "new " mold than the old stuff rising from the dead.  

Answer 12

i dont no how to get it out, but i can tell you i am studying black mold in college rite now and sweetie, that stuff is horrible.

look up some sites online to help find ways to get it out.

it is very bad to breath in and if it gets on your hands and your hands go in your mouth, you can get VERY sick. also, don't make contact with your eyes either.put on goggles and gloves while dealing with this stuff.

its the worst possible mold there is.

if you have no luck finding any info on the internet,

plz call someone rite away or you could be in trouble.

hope i helped you out!

Answer 13

you need to make sure that the bathroom is ventilated open the window .bleach will work but you might need to spray it a few times ,but the key is to make sure the room is ventilated after you taking a shower

Answer 14

yeah we get that too.

Bleach gets it out.

Just really try to avoid taking hot showers because the steam causes it.

Answer 15

Bleach will kill it, but only on the surface.  If it is behind the walls, you may have a problem.